Very true - for example, we broadcast on the radio (on the amazing WRUW-FM) and potentially anyone in the Cleveland metro area could listen. If we want to keep them engaged with our show, we have to provide some sort of background.
Usually what we try to do - and what I think we did pretty well here - is condense the "exposition," as it were, into the first ~20 minutes of interview (our first segment, usually, barring the technical difficulties we had during this one), and then move on to more unique questions. Not everyone is able to do that, though, and what we consider unique questions are sometimes ones people have already thought of